VETERANS & MILITARY COALITION OF THE OZARKS
VMCO Supports Veterans by assisting Veterans, and their families, in obtaining benefits and services earned through military service and provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other local, state, or federal governmental agencies.

Committed To Keeping Veterans, and their families, Healthy & Safe
Extensive experience and resources to advise and assist with preparing claims and the VA Medical care process.
Veterans Health Care
The Veterans Health Administration operates the largest health care delivery system in the United States, providing health care to over 6.4 million veterans.
VMCO has extensive experience and resources to advise and assist in preparing claims and medical care processes. VMCO supports veterans and their families by assisting them navigate the complex process of obtaining their earned compension and benefits.
If you have questions on obtaining your earned V.A. compensation and benefits, please click on the form button below to be taken to a secure form to submit information for a claim.
You may also go to our Contact Page with any questions you have and someone will get back with you.
Let us help you.
Military Ceremonies & Events
VMCO has facilitated these events
War Medallion & Stars For Our Troops
A token of appreciation for Veterans and First Responders
Businesses We Do Business With
Because they care about Veterans and their families
Organizations We Are Associated With
Each organization has a purpose.
Become a VMCO Member
Receive information about Veteran events and benefits.
About Veterans & Military Coalition of the Ozarks
Comprised of 100% Volunteers that have a passion to help Veterans

Our Mission
The Veterans and Military Coalition of the Ozarks (VMCO) (hereinafter referred to as the “Coalition”) promotes communication and coordination between all recognized veterans and military organizations. As of 2022 to present VMCO has worked with veterans in 42 states and 3 countries (Japan, Philippians, and Guam) thanks to the age of electronics. The Coalition’s objective is that affiliated Veteran and Military Service Organizations working together on issues of mutual agreement, can harness the grassroots support of local veteran/military constituents and families to accomplish far more than by working on these initiatives as separate organizations. The Coalition maintains communication with all Coalition organizations to provide a unity of effort and keeping all informed of local, state and federal legislation, programs and initiatives affecting veterans, military members and families; thereby, achieving common goals and maximizing positive impacts. The Veterans and Military Coalition of the Ozarks is a nonprofit, tax exempt organization qualifying under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Our Goals
The Veterans and Military Coalition of the Ozarks (VMCO) is a group of similarly minded veterans and military service organizations in joint pursuit of the following goals: Ensuring that veterans, military service members and their families can access the full range of benefits and services available to them.
Where you'll find us in your community...
Community Services &
Military Ceremonies
VMCO facilitates many community events through their military connections. If you are needing any military services or ceremonies, contact us.
Latest Updates from VMCO Facebook
From Military.com
The Army Parade Was Marked by Quiet Crowds, Trump-Linked Sponsors. But Soldiers Kept Politics at Bay.
For many soldiers, the Army's 250th birthday parade in Washington, D.C., on Saturday was a celebration they managed to divorce from its politically charged backdrop, including its overlap with President Donald Trump's 79th birthday and the president's deployment of troops against protesters in Los Angeles.
"This was about us, not him," one senior noncommissioned officer told Military.com.
Still, for other troops, it was hard to ignore the unusual imagery of parading military hardware in the nation's capital -- a long-standing Trump aspiration but also a hallmark of authoritarian regimes like Russia and North Korea -- and, to them, it was an enormous escalation in politicizing the force. One midlevel officer called the event "repulsive."
Read Next: Supreme Court Rules Unanimously Against Time Limits on Combat-Related Disability Pay
Despite the mixed feelings, the Army birthday parade was also an overdue opportunity to engage with the public and highlight the service's rank and file. It provided a contrast to recent episodes that have marred the Army's image, from the chaotic exit from Afghanistan to the more recent domestic National Guard deployments to cities where public protests have grown over Trump's immigration policies and second-term agenda.
"I have become very disillusioned over the past couple years, but watching the presentation made me proud," one sergeant major told Military.com. "From what I saw, it was not overly political; it was just our people being great."
Unlike the Marine Corps, which treats its birthday like a sacred ritual, the Army has historically kept its own anniversary low-key. A modest version of this year's parade had been quietly in the works for more than a year, and it was originally slated to be much more humble, with just a few hundred troops.
But in the final weeks, the plan abruptly ballooned into a sprawling, high-gloss spectacle complete with armored vehicles, aircraft flyovers, and last-minute demands on units to cancel training and scramble to shine up their gear. The Army rarely does parades and hasn't done one of note in three decades.
The parade came just days after Trump delivered a fiery, rally-style speech at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where uniformed soldiers were seen cheering his political attacks and, in some cases, wearing pro-Trump merchandise purchased from a pop-up shop, which Army officials objected to but were overruled.
In Washington, D.C., on Saturday, several high-profile sponsors added to the political undertones of the parade as well.
Among them: Coinbase, the cryptocurrency giant that donated $1 million to Trump's second inauguration; Amazon, whose founder Jeff Bezos has made overt efforts to curry favor with Trump during his second term; and Palantir, which last year was awarded a $178 million contract to build new artificial intelligence systems for the Army.
One of Palantir's top executives, Shyam Sankar, was directly commissioned into the Army as a lieutenant colonel last week. The move has sparked quiet unease on Capitol Hill, where some see it as a symbol of big tech’s growing foothold inside the Pentagon, particularly within the Army.
At the event, attendees were being handed Phorm Energy drinks, a beverage that launched a week ago and is a collaboration between Anheuser-Busch and UFC CEO Dana White. Trump frequently attends UFC fights.
The event was organized by America250, the congressionally chartered commission responsible for coordinating celebrations marking the nation's 250th birthday in 2026.
At the helm is Executive Director Ari Abergel, a former spokesperson for Melania Trump and former producer for "Fox & Friends," the flagship morning show on Fox News. For the parade, the commission enlisted Event Strategies Inc., a firm with long-standing ties to Trump's orbit, to handle most of the parade's logistics. The company oversees many of Trump's political rallies and orchestrated some of the pro-Trump protests in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021.
The parade didn't see any notable protests as anti-Trump demonstrations were taking place in most major cities in the country under the banner "No Kings." However, there were some brief tensions.
One incident included a woman shouting at a teenager holding a homemade sign that read, "Hegseth still listens to Nickelback," a jab that escalated into a brief shouting match between her and the kid's mother. In a separate scuffle, two men traded punches before being separated by the crowd. There was virtually no security within the one-mile-wide event area itself, with most police and federal agents concentrated at the entrance.
But the real mood of the event was shaped less by flare-ups than by a strange quiet.
Tanks lined the streets and a central stage piped in music, but for most of the parade, the crowd stood in near silence. There were no speakers, and outside of the immediate space in front of the stage, there was no music or emcee.
Only the occasional cheer broke the stillness. Soldiers marched largely without musical accompaniment as military bands were notably absent for most of the procession, and long, awkward gaps stretched between units and vehicles.
Unlike the colorful, crowd-pleasing spectacle of something like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, there was little attempt to engage the audience or build any visual momentum.
The only real jolt of energy came at the very end, when a group of cadets marched past singing in cadence. Washington, D.C.'s signature oppressive humidity didn't help, leaving much of the audience subdued.
Many attendees arrived nearly five hours before the parade began, funneled through TSA-style security checkpoints as part of the heightened lockdown typical for presidential events.
To make matters worse, most of the designated cooling tents failed, and Military.com observed multiple attendees showing signs of heat exhaustion, several of whom had to be medically evacuated. ... See MoreSee Less
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
All Veterans, and their families,
are invited to attend the
VMCO's General Meeting
this Thursday, June 19, 2025.
This month’s keynote speaker is Jody D. Andrews, from St. Croix Hospice.
This is Jody's 27th year in hospice, home health and medical equipment educations and sales. Hospice gives Jody the ability and resources to meet and help a lot of veterans. Besides bringing veterans together, educating and being a resource for them, he also helps them find comfort and dignity at the end of life by working for the best company who does just that, St. Croix Hospice. St. Croix provides the best care when it’s needed most.
VMCO General Meetings are on the third Thursday of every month at 12 noon. Located at the Golden Corral on Shepherd of the Hills Expressway in Branson. (optional lunch service starts at 11am, for $12 when purchased at the VMCO registration desk) Check us out in person, Facebook, or go to VMCO1.org.
2025 Meeting Dates - Mark your calendars to network with Veterans and Veteran oriented businesses with contacts on the local, state, and federal levels.
June 19
July - NO meeting
August 21
September 18
October 16
November - NO meeting
December 18 ... See MoreSee Less
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Thank You to Parmele Disability Advocates of Springfield for donating a $500 check to VMCO. They represent veterans before the: Department of Veterans Affairs, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, and the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Pictured are Ed Wilson (L) Vice President of VMCO, Blake Leitch (C) and Jenn Meyer (R) both from Parmele.
You have our appreciation for all you do for Veterans! ... See MoreSee Less
0 CommentsComment on Facebook